The brown-haired boy with a bowl-shaped haircut was between five to seven in age. He hugged the far side of the seat instead of clinging to his mother, as Elof would have expected.
“Sorry for your loss,” Elof said as they approached the wagon.
“Stupid accident caused by that boy,” the man rudely accused the boy with his words and pointed finger.
The woman’s back was stiff, and her head turned away from the man. Who were they to each other? Hopefully, he wasn’t her husband by the way he was acting.
“Will the preacher and others be arriving shortly?” Dalberg asked, probably because he knew the locals.
“Nope. Just need to get him in the ground and get them off the farm,” the man replied gruffly, still seated on his horse.
“I’m Elof Lundahl, and this is Lee Dalberg.
“Jim Rhoades,” the man tipped his hat but didn’t offer any more information. A rather rude man considering the circumstances.
If you’d like, we’ll help you dig the grave.”
“I’d be obliged. The woman and boy won’t be much help.”
“Who we burying?” Dalberg asked the same question that was on the tip of Elof’s tongue since Rhoades wasn’t saying.
“My new renter, George Meyer. His stupid son dropped a lantern in the barn this morning causing a hay pile to ignite in a pen. Meyer managed to catch himself on fire trying to beat out the flames. Burned the door of my barn. That’ll have to be repaired.”
Elof walked up to the wagon, took his hat off, and placed it against his chest. “I’m so sorry, ma’am. I assume this was your husband?”
“Don’t expect to understand her because her English is terrible. She’s a Swedish immigrant George married less than two weeks ago.”
Elof ignored the man and slowly said to the woman. “I offer my sincerest sympathies, Mrs. Meyer.”
“Thank you, sir.” Mrs. Meyer stumbled over the words. Her face burned bright red after trying to say the words correctly in English.
Elof quietly spoke in Swedish to her. “I’m from Sweden so you can talk to me. Does Rhoades know the language?”
She sat up straight, stared at Elof a second before glancing at Rhoades. Mrs. Meyer gave a single shake of her head meaning the man wouldn’t understand him.
“Let me help you down, and we talk a bit.”
“You speak her language, Lundahl?” Rhoades looked surprised at the fact.
“Yes, I’m originally from Sweden. Why?”
“Then you tell her she needs to be off the place by the end of the day,” the man growled while rudely pointing his index finger at her.
“She just lost her husband, Rhoades! You can’t kick her out of her home. She needs time to figure out what to do next.”
“Nope. Not since they about burned down my barn. I expect payment for the repairs too. Surely Meyer had some money stashed in the mattress or somewhere.”
Elof looked at Mrs. Meyer and knew she understood what the landlord said, or at least the tone of it.
“Where is she supposed to go?” Elof clinched his right fist at his side, trying to hold his temper down.
I know Dalberg travels between Silver Crossing and Miller Springs. He can take them to the depot and drop them off.”
“Them?” Elof wondered what would happen to the boy.
“She needs to take the boy with her. She married Meyer, so his son is her responsibility.”
“No!” The boy screamed before climbing down from the seat and taking off for the trees around the cemetery.
“Jamie!” The woman stood up in the wagon calling after the boy before starting to climb out of the wagon.
Elof automatically reached for her waist to lift her down. Her clothes reeked of smoke. Singed spots dotted her light blue dress material. A large gaping hole in her blouse sleeve showed red, blistered skin underneath.
“You were hurt fighting the fire,” Elof said, before noticing the reddened skin on the side of her face she’d kept turned away from him.
“Where else were you hurt?” Elof asked as he gingerly set her on her feet.
“My hand.” She had gloves on, but her hands were shaking. And she was driving a team of horses in her condition?
“Was Jamie hurt in the fire too?”
“I don’t think so. He ran into the house to get me when George...”
Elof squeezed his eyes shut, thinking about what the poor boy must be going through. Seeing his father die in a fire? Not knowing his new mother well enough to seek comfort from her?
“You gonna help dig this grave? I got other things to do besides burying a body that caused trouble,” Rhoades called over his shoulder.
“Let the boy be for now. I don’t think he’ll go far.” Elof grabbed the shovel he’d leaned against the wagon but turned back to Mrs. Meyer. “If you’d like, Dalberg and I will take you home to gather your things and take you to Miller Springs.”
She tried to take a deep breath, but coughed instead, maybe due to the smoke she’d recently inhaled.
“Thank you, Mr. Lundahl.”
Elof nodded and then joined the two men digging the grave. He never imagined he’d be digging a grave today besides marking another.
Continue reading Elof’s Mission on Amazon.
~*~*~*~
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Many thanks from the Kansas prairie!
Linda K. Hubalek
Historical Romance Books by Linda K. Hubalek
Grooms with Honor Series
Angus’ Trust (Angus and Daisy)
Fergus’ Honor (Fergus and Iris)
Gabe’s Pledge (Gabe and Iva Mae)
Mack’s Care (Mack and Pansy)
Cullen’s Love (Cullen and Rose)
Seth’s Promise (Seth and Lily)
Adolph’s Choice (Adolph and Poppy)
Nolan’s Vow (Nolan and Holly)
Elof’s Mission (Elof and Linnea)
Jasper’s Wish (Jasper and Julip)
Tully’s Faith (Tully and Violet)
Brides with Grit Series
Rania Ropes a Rancher (Rania and Jacob)
Millie Marries a Marshal (Millie and Adam)
Hilda Hogties a Horseman (Hilda and Noah)
Cora Captures a Cowboy (Cora and Dagmar)
Sarah Snares a Soldier (Sarah and Marcus)
Cate Corrals a Cattleman (Cate and Isaac)
Darcie Desires a Drover (Darcie and Reuben)
Tina Tracks a Trail Boss (Tina and Leif)
Lorna Loves a Lawyer (Lorna and Lyle)
Helen Heals a Hotelier (Helen and Ethan)
Faye Favors a Foreman (Faye and Rusty)
~*~*~*~
Contemporary Romance Books by Linda K. Hubalek
The Clear Creek Legacy Series features descendants of the Brides with Grit and Grooms with Honor families (available and future titles)
The Saddler’s Legacy (featuring the Shepard families)
The Rancher’s Birthright (featuring the Reagan families)
The Marshal’s Gift (featuring the Wilerson families)
The Cowboy’s Heritage (featuring the Hamner families)
T
he Soldier’s Bequest (featuring the Brenner families)
Historical Fiction Books by Linda K. Hubalek
Trail of Thread Series
Trail of Thread
Thimble of Soil
Stitch of Courage
Butter in the Well Series
Butter in the Well
Prairie Bloomin’
Egg Gravy
Looking Back
Planting Dreams Series
Planting Dreams
Cultivating Hope
Harvesting Faith
Kansas Quilter Series
Tying the Knot
~*~*~*~
About the Author
Linda Hubalek grew up on the Kansas prairie, always wanting to be a farmer like her parents and ancestors. After earning a college degree in Agriculture, marriage took Linda away from Kansas as her husband worked on engineering jobs in several states.
Meanwhile, Linda wrote historical fiction books about pioneer women who homesteaded in Kansas between 1854 to the early 1900s, especially her own immigrant ancestors.
Linda Hubalek and her husband eventually moved back home to Kansas, where they raised American buffalo (bison) for a dozen years.
Linda currently writes sweet historical western romance and an occasional contemporary western romance.
Nolan's Vow (Grooms with Honor Book 8) Page 20
